The Gators’ senior point guard and consummate team player hit the 3-point shot that everyone in the FedEx Forum knew was coming with seconds ticking away at the end of the first half of UF’s NCAA Tournament South Region final against Dayton Saturday.

Seconds after draining it, Wilbekin ran the length of the court to the locker room, well ahead of his teammates, arms outstretched in triumph and a baseline-to-baseline smile on his face.

Can anyone blame him for basking in a few seconds of personal glory?

Once again, Wilbekin was the catalyst for another postseason victory. He scored 23 points, nine in the last 3:30 of the first half during a 15-1 run, leading the Gators to a 62-52 victory over the Flyers and with it a berth in the Final Four next week at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Florida (36-2) won its 30th game in a row, broke the school record for victories in one season and finally hurdled the Elite Eight barrier after losing three regional finals in a row. Coach Billy Donovan returns to the Final Four for the first time since 2007, when his team won the second of its back-to-back national championships, and for the fourth time in his 18 years as UF coach.

The Gators will play in the national semifinals on Saturday against the winner of Sunday’s East Region final between Michigan State and Connecticut.

Donovan said the disappointments in the tournament the last three years for his senior class of Patric Young of Jacksonville, Wilbekin, Will Yeguete and Casey Prather might have laid the foundation for what they’ve accomplished this season.

“I’m not so sure these four seniors, having gone through the experiences in the previous Elite Eights, could have made the next step they have made,” he said. “What we went through enabled those guys to learn a lot to take the next step.”

Wilbekin, who made 2 of 9 shots and scored a total of six points in those three Elite Eight losses, more than made up for it.

“This is the most fun I’ve ever had in my life,” said the normally stoic Wilbekin, who was named the South Region MVP to add to his SEC Tournament MVP award. “I happy with the [region MVP] award. But nothing compares to winning. It feels so good.”

Young, who rallied from a poor game on Thursday against UCLA, dominated the Flyers (26-11) inside on defense, and scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds, blocked four shots and had two steals.

When the final buzzer sounded, the Jacksonville native put his hands on his head and stared at the scene around him. When asked what he was thinking, Young had an unusual answer.

“The first thing was disbelief,” he said. “It still hasn’t hit me, that we’re going to be one of the four teams playing for the NCAA championship.”

Given the disappointments of the past three seasons, including twice when the Gators blew double-digit leads in the second half, it was understandable.

Wilbekin simply wouldn’t allow it and took the team on his shoulders at the most important moments in the game.

Dayton, the upstart 11th seed that knocked off Ohio State, Syracuse and Stanford in order, was battling gamely and with 4:38 remaining in the first half, forged a 23-23 tie on Kendall Pollard’s layup.

Florida’s run over the remainder of the half started modestly enough, when Wilbekin made one of two foul shots. On the next possession, he made a 10-footer. Then a layup.

Following a 3-pointer by Michael Frazier and a basket after recovering a loose ball by Yeguete, Wilbekin hit two more foul shots with 1:07 left. When Dayton failed to score on its next trip down, the Gators had the ball for the final possession.

Wilbekin dribble at the top of the key and waited for someone to get open inside. When it didn’t happen, he let the shot fly. It connected for the second 3-pointer he’s hit at the first-half buzzer in the last three games.

It capped a 15-1 run for the Gators to give them a 38-24 halftime lead.

Dayton didn’t go quietly. Devin Oliver and Dyshawn Pierre hit 3-point shots to start the second half. The Gators quelled that rally and Young hit a layup with 11:25 left to give Florida its biggest lead of the game, 53-36.

Back came the Flyers once again, cutting the lead to 58-50 with 3:55 left. But primarily because of Wilbekin on the outside and Young on the inside, Dayton didn’t score for the next 3:39. By that time, Wilbekin had made 4 of-6 free throws and Gator fans started pricing flights to Dallas.